This report examines the common economic factors that continue to drive conflict in Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen. It also makes specific recommendations to Western policymakers addressing these types of sub-economies in detail.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the UK Department for International Development and the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs for their generous backing of the research that underpins this report. Particular thanks go to Nicole El Khawaja for her management of the project and the development of the interactive mapping of the conflict economies explored in this report. The data platform for the mapping was developed by Tom Wills. The authors would also like to thank David Butter, Vesna Bojicic-Dzelilovic and Tuesday Reitano for their constructive reviews of earlier versions of this report. Zaki Mehchy’s numerous reviews and input over the use of economic data have also significantly added to this report. Finally, thanks also go to Jake Statham for his forensic editing and to Reni Zhelyazkova for readying the report for publication.
This material has been funded by UK aid from the UK government; however, the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the UK government’s official policies.